Gen Raheel Sharif bids PM Nawaz farewell during visit

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Chief of Army Staff General Raheel Sharif on Monday paid a farewell visit to Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif at the PM House, a day prior to relinquishing his duties as army chief.

The premier praised General Raheel for his valuable services rendered as army chief, extended wishes for the latter’s post-retirement life and his future endeavours, a statement from the PM House said.

General Raheel will part ways with his duties on November 29 as the army chief and handover his responsibilities to Lieutenant General Qamar Javed Bajwa who was appointed as the new Chief of Army Staff on Saturday. General Zubair Hayat was appointed as the new Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee (CJCSC).

On November 24, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif hosted a farewell dinner in honour of General Raheel and said that he proved beyond a shadow of doubt that he was one of the finest military leaders of his generation.

He also said that as the army chief, Gen Raheel made a vast difference in the service of our country. “We have successfully established the writ of the state and reclaimed every inch of territory under our sovereign control,” the premier remarked.

As Gen Raheel steps down, it will be the first time in decades that Pakistan’s army chief will retire after completion of his term without any extension. His two predecessors – Ashfaq Parvez Kayani and Pervez Musharraf – remained in the top slot for six and 10 years, respectively.

Although Gen Raheel had himself announced almost a year ago that he would not take any extension, speculation about whether he would be hanging up his uniform continued till earlier this week until the military’s media wing confirmed publicly that he had started a farewell tour of army formations across the country.